Isaac Fayose Laments Abandonment By Politicians He Supported

Isaac Fayose, younger brother of former Ekiti State governor, Ayo Fayose, has lamented what he described as abandonment by politicians he supported during past elections.

The businessman said he now felt like “a lonely voice in the wilderness” after years of personal and financial sacrifices made in support of politicians and causes he believed in.

Fayose spoke in a video shared on his Instagram page on Friday, where he spoke in a mixture of Pidgin English and Yoruba.

“Nigeria is a bad country. Very bad. I’m now like an orphan. I’m now like a lonely voice in the wilderness,” he said.

Fayose recalled his involvement in the legal troubles of his brother in 2018, when Ayo Fayose was facing prosecution by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

He said he personally confronted the then acting EFCC chairman, Ibrahim Magu, over the case.

“I struggled with my brother. No, no, no, no, we won’t agree. I even followed him to EFCC. We shouted, ‘Magu, Ole! Magu, Ole!’ Magu said, ‘Who is this boy calling me Ole? They should go and look for anything to rope him,’” he said.

Ayo Fayose was arraigned by the EFCC in 2018 over alleged fraud linked to his tenure as governor and was later granted bail.

Fayose said the matter had continued to affect him personally, even as his brother’s child was set to become a member of the Ekiti State House of Assembly.

“Up till today, they still rope me into a matter that I am still going to court for. That my brother now has taken an appointment. His child is about to be a member of the House of Assembly in Ekiti.

“I’m now on my own, facing my problem. They said, ‘We told you, Isaac, keep quiet, keep quiet.’ You didn’t listen,” he said.

Fayose also recounted what he described as the personal sacrifices he made during the 2026 Ekiti State governorship election.

He said he cut short his mourning after receiving a call from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate, Wole Oluyede, asking him to support the campaign.

“What a pity. See Ekiti. I went to bury my wife. Where I was, Oluyede called me. He said, ‘Please, please, let’s take our state back.’ I see how people are suffering. I said no, I was coming.

“I quickly buried my wife and hurriedly ran home. I got home, spent my money, did everything, election eve,” he said.

Oluyede contested the June 20, 2026, Ekiti governorship election against the incumbent governor, Biodun Oyebanji of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Fayose, however, expressed disappointment that Oluyede had allegedly distanced himself from him after the election.

“They were calling me, ‘Oga is here, Oga wants to talk.’ Oluyede has not come to greet me since that time. He has gone back to the President. And even the governor that I was fighting, they are taking pictures together. They are now friends,” he said.

Fayose also spoke about his involvement in Osun State politics, recalling his support for Ademola Adeleke during the 2022 governorship election and the August 15, 2026, election.

“Look at Osun, 2022. I nearly removed my head,” he said, referring to the personal sacrifices he said he made during Adeleke’s first successful bid for the governorship.

According to him, he was again contacted by Adeleke ahead of the 2026 election while he was in Australia.

“This time too, as I was in Australia, the governor of Osun called me, Governor Adeleke. He said, ‘Isaac, we need you on board the election.’ I put everything on my head. We won’t agree, we won’t agree,” he said.

Adeleke, who contested the August 15 election on the platform of the Accord Party after leaving the PDP, was declared winner by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

He polled 511,067 votes to defeat the APC candidate, Bola Oyebamiji, who scored 444,815 votes.

Fayose said he felt abandoned after Adeleke travelled to Abuja following the election to present his certificate of return to President Bola Tinubu.

“Six days after, the governor is in Abuja, showing his certificate, his return certificate, to the President. It’s like I’m alone. What a pity,” he said.

Fayose also compared the situation to political reconciliations involving other public figures, citing the relationship between singer Davido and Federal Capital Territory Minister, Nyesom Wike.

“Davido that we were shouting, he and Wike are now hugging each other. Everybody is now smiling with each other together,” he said.

He claimed that he had rejected money and a Mercedes-Benz G-Wagon offered to him during previous election campaigns, saying his priority was the welfare of his people.

“They came to meet me, they gave me money, I said I don’t want. They gave me G-Wagon, I said I don’t want. I want my people to go. Even the people I was fighting for, election day, they will sell their vote again,” he said.

Fayose also criticised the practice of vote-selling, saying it undermined the sacrifices made by individuals who campaigned for better conditions for their communities.

“It’s now like I’m the only one seeing the rubbish going on in my country. I am now alone, now looking like a zombie. It’s lonely at the top,” he said.